For the Love of Money and a Kiss to Boot
by Latin Usako
Summary: Nabiki Tendo's always known how to handle business matters...but,, for once, she may be in over her head.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: All the characters belong to Rumiko  
Takahashi and other respective companies and I am  
in no way making any profit from this story. This  
is just for my personal enjoyment and for the  
enjoyment of those who may read this.  
  
Rated: PG-13 (There's some making out that could be offensive to some readers, either because of the content or because it was so badly written!..LOL).   
  
Email me with C&C: simplyshy@hotmail.com  
  
**************************************************   
For the Love of Money and a Kiss to Boot  
By   
SM  
**************************************************  
  
"Nabiki Tendo, what kami have I offended so that he may have punished me with your presence in my humble home?"  
  
The middle Tendo sister gave a very unlady-like snort, knowing that the Kuno mansion was anything but humble, as she made her way past Tatewaki Kuno. After all, she had never cared for such formalities as being welcomed into a home. As far as she was concerned, if you were in her debt there was no reason that she _shouldn't_ be.   
  
"Come on, Kuno-baby, have you no shame that you treat a lady in such a manner?" Nabiki made sure to sway her hips before deciding to sit atop Kuno's mahogany desk. She crossed her shapely legs and regarded him coolly.   
  
Tatewaki shut the door behind him before making his way to one of the leather chairs in the Kuno office.   
  
"I would should such a lady be in my presence."  
  
Nabiki pushed her lower lip into a pout and gave him a feigned hurt expression. She lifted her hand to her forehead and gave him her best 'woe is me' pose.   
  
'Oh Tatchi, why must you treat me so?'   
  
Kuno, unimpressed with her theatrical performance replied just as she had expected him to.   
  
'Let your concerns be known Nabiki Tendo, for I have not the time nor the patience to be with you all afternoon.'  
  
The pout was instantly gone from her face and Nabiki's demeanor was once again that of a collected businesswoman.   
  
'Well, it just so happens Tatchi, that I have a couple of new photographs you might be interested in.'   
  
She pulled out a file from her brown leather attaché and waved it at Kuno.   
  
'Might those be pictures that have captured the beauty of both the fair Akane and my pig-tailed goddess?'   
  
He leaned forward, a strange gleam in his eye.   
  
'They might be.' Nabiki uncrossed and crossed her legs once more, giving him the seductive smile that usually got her free drinks from some of the wealthiest businessmen who resided in Tokyo.   
  
Kuno was oblivious to this grin, hypnotized by the file and the thought of the contents inside.   
  
Nabiki flipped the file open, taking out a handful of pictures as she did so.   
  
"Ooh, I think these might be my best works of art yet. Here's Akane stretching in the dojo. Here's one of your pig-tailed goddess on the beach in an _extremely_ revealing bikini."   
  
Nabiki, too engrossed in her description of the pictures she was looking at, did not notice Kuno's nosebleed. Nor did she notice that he had turned various shades of red before passing out on the fine Persian rug.  
  
"Let's see, these babies are probably worth about, oh 5000 yen don't you think?"   
  
There was no answer, so Nabiki put down the pictures and looked to where Kuno had been sitting on the settee. That was funny, where had that babbling idiot gone off to?  
  
"Oh my goddesses whose beauty cannot be held by pictures!"  
  
Kuno jumped at Nabiki and reached out to take the pictures in his hand. With his disheveled hair and his glazed over eyes he looked quite the picture of the crazed rich man.   
  
His intention was, of course, to reach for the pictures but his arms ended up enfolding something else instead. Something soft and curvy and...definitely something soft and curvy.   
  
Nabiki looked down, mouth agape. She sure as hell wasn't going to let Kuno get a look at the goods until she got her money so she had, of course, snatched them out of the way just in time but...dammit, the idiot was getting a load of _her_ goods and...   
  
"Kuno, you idiot! Get...off...of...me!"   
  
Now, Nabiki Tendo was by no means a martial artist, nor was she prone to bouts of violence-she had people who did that kind of dirty stuff for her. But at that moment, she gave Kuno a sturdy kick to the head that would have impressed even the mallet wielding Akane Tendo had she been there to witness it.  
  
"Ack!"  
  
Kuno mumbled something unintelligible before falling in a heap on the floor once more.  
  
"Really Kuno-baby, the things you do for being such a delusional, narcissistic, flies for brains..."  
  
Nabiki rattled of the list of things that could cause a man to act so foolishly. Not that she enjoyed it...much. Hell, who was she kidding? She loved telling Kuno why it was that he was such a low excuse for a human being. Besides, his ego needed to be put down a notch...or a hundred actually. Either way, she couldn't bear to listen to Kuno's "Top ten reasons I am god's gift to women" monologue. She would rather start giving money out to all the blind beggars she met on the street.   
  
It was awhile before Kuno recovered from Nabiki's blow but recover he did and he was up once more. This time he was not so rash to lunge at Nabiki. After all, things did not fare too well for him whenever he was rash. Come to think of it, they didn't fare well at all.  
  
So he walked back to his executive chair and placed his feet atop the desk...and enjoyed the view.   
  
Nabiki Tendo was, after all, not unattractive. Hell, she had serious curves that would rival any of the girls in his por...err, in magazines.   
  
From where he was sitting he suddenly wondered how he had overlooked the middle Tendo daughter. How had he missed placing her on his "women I will one day conquer with my dashing good looks and my utterly irrepressible charm" itinerary?  
  
The champagne-colored blouse she was wearing did nothing to hide her smooth, well-muscled back. Kuno's eyes followed the curve of her back until he reached her round...   
  
Yes, he definitely should have put her on the list. He would have too, if he didn't loathe her so much.   
  
He saw her shoulders tense and she finally slid off his desk and turned to face him.  
  
"Are you done admiring my impressive physique or would you like to see more Kuno-baby?"   
  
She undid two of the buttons on her shirt so that he could see the line between her breasts.   
  
He suddenly wondered what it would be like to fluster Nabiki Tendo. If it could be done, then the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High would certainly be the one to do it.   
  
"The Blue Thunder would not mind getting a glimpse of your assets now that you offer them so generously. Wouldst thou like for me to lead the way to my chambers where we can both partake in the showing of parts?" Kuno seemed much like a panther on the prowl with Nabiki as his prey. Much to Nabiki's chagrin, he seemed very much in control at the moment.   
  
Nabiki took a step back, startled by the comment. Kuno was supposed to stutter and lose what little self-control he possessed. On his best days he was at least supposed to get panic-stricken.   
  
If Nabiki had learned anything about Kuno Tatewaki, it was that he lived to chase after women. That was where the thrill was, in the chasing. She was more than sure that once he got the woman he would have absolutely no idea what to do with her. _She_ was supposed to be in control.   
  
"Ahem...well." Nabiki cleared her throat before slipping on her mask of control. It was never good to lose control. Kuno was the prime example.   
  
"Oh Tatchi, I doubt that you could handle me if I followed you into your chambers so why don't I save you the complete and utter humiliation?" Nabiki smirked at him and took a seat in one of the nearest chairs. Take that, you arrogant jackass.   
  
Kuno returned the smile and their eyes remained locked, neither combatant wanting to back down. After a few seconds of silence, Kuno spoke.  
  
"Never mind that. There are more important matters we need to discuss."   
  
It was funny, Nabiki thought, the guy could slip out of that Shakespearean dialect so easily that she often wondered if maybe she wasn't the only one who played her role well. Impressive.   
  
"So, Nabiki Tendo, what's your asking price?"   
  
Nabiki raised a perfectly manicured hand in front of her, glad that she had chosen the blue nail color. It brought out the color in her eyes.   
  
"Six thousand yen."   
  
"But I thought you said five thousand earlier?"  
  
Nabiki clucked her tongue in her mouth.   
  
"Now I've told you time and time again that, for you, thinking isn't such a good idea Tatchi. Six thousand yen."  
  
"You manipulative..."  
  
"Seven thousand yen and a Gucci bag."  
  
"gold-digging.."  
  
"Four thousand yen, a Gucci bag, and a kiss."   
  
"heartless...wha?"  
  
Kuno stared, dumbfounded ,at Nabiki. He could not have been more surprised if she had jumped out of her chair and started singing "I'm Every Woman" with a banjo in her arms.   
  
"Why so surprised Kuno baby? I mean, I've sort of been wondering what all your fuss is about. You claim to be a heartthrob that can satisfy any woman should said woman give him a chance."  
  
He opened and closed his mouth but no sound came out.   
  
"So here's your chance oh 'Mighty Blue Thunder.' Here's your chance to make me swoon. Prove yourself."  
  
Kuno regained a semblance of composure but even then he could not figure the young woman out.   
  
She had lowered the price of the pictures. Nabiki Tendo _never_ did that. Hell would freeze over and Kuno would lose his virility before that ever happened. But here she was, the little minx, accepting less monetary payment and asking for a kiss.   
  
More amazing was the fact that she _wanted_ to kiss him. And she was awake. And she wasn't drunk. That was the amazing part. A beautiful, ruthless, sober woman wanted to kiss the Blue Thunder.   
  
An image of the two of them locked in a passionate embrace with hands roaming and other improper things appeared in his mind and it was all he could do not to pass out again.  
  
Suddenly, Kuno wasn't so sure this was such a great idea. This had to be an evil ploy to make him her fool. No one made a fool out of Kuno Tatewaki but the Blue Thunder himself.  
  
"Why the bargain price Nabiki?"   
  
Nabiki shrugged her shoulders.   
  
"The laugh I'll get out of your lack of skill will be compensation enough. Besides, I've got a stash of pictures at home that you'll soon pay an exorbitant amount of money for."  
  
She smiled, a wicked gleam in her blue eyes.   
  
"I'll make up for it. One way or another."  
  
Kuno was momentarily speechless. Nabiki Tendo never ceased to amaze him with her ability to confuse him. Oh kami, how he hated her.   
  
Never one to be silent for long, he came up with a retort. Without thinking, of course.   
  
"Be careful what you say Tendo. You may think me the fool's fool but I just may prove that the fool's fool is no fool at all."   
  
Damn, that had sounded suave when he said it in his head.   
  
Nabiki snickered, Kuno's sheepish look getting the best of her. That had probably sounded really good when he thought it. Filthy rich fool.  
  
"So what'll it be, Kuno? Will the Blue Thunder rise to the challenge, or has he been shouting falsehoods to us all along?"   
  
That one had to sting, she thought.  
  
Damn her that one stung, thought Kuno.  
  
Not that he'd ever show it of course.   
  
Kuno opened a drawer and pulled out a stack of bills, which he waved in front of Nabiki's face.   
  
He could practically see the dollar signs as her eyes glazed over. Why, the girl was practically lathing at the mouth. How foolish that she would be so emotional when it came to money.   
  
Even Tatewaki Kuno was wise enough to know that you never showed signs of weakness in front of your foes. No siree, Tatewaki Kuno had yet to break down over anything. It just was not his style.  
  
"Sasuke!"   
  
The small ninja, who had been clinging to the ceiling during their conversation flew down, landing softly beside his master.   
  
"Yes Master Kuno?"   
  
Kuno signaled the ninja with a wave of his hand .   
  
"Get Miss Tendo a 'Gucci' bag from the private Kuno supply."   
  
Translation: Sneak into my demented sister's room and steal one of hers.   
  
"Certainly, sir."   
  
The ninja was gone and back in a few seconds and he graciously placed the bag in Nabiki's hands.   
  
"Not bad. But why black? Well, I guess it'll go well with my...um, Kuno?"   
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Why is the bag filled with dead rose petals? And I might be mistaken, but I don't think Gucci ever added whips, chains, handcuffs, or blindfolds to his list of handbag accessories."  
  
Beads of sweat made their way down Kuno's face. How could he have forgotten his sister's masochist tendencies?   
  
"Er, Sasuke, hold Miss Tendo's bag until I give her leave and be gone until I call you once more."   
  
He clapped his hands for extra emphasis and the ninja was gone in the blink of an eye.   
  
"How long did it take you to train _him_ Tatchi?"   
  
"Only as long as it will take me to impress you with my kissing skills Nabiki."   
  
Kuno really was unpredictable. He was actually addressing her by her first name instead of addressing her with his usual formalities. Maybe...maybe it was time that she started giving him the same kind of semi-respect.  
  
Nah, it'd just make him feel that she was taken by him and _that_ could lead to him getting the silly notion that there could be something between them. _Then_ he might decide to lavish her with expensive gifts and...  
  
Nabiki cleared the unthinkable out of her mind. Really, some of Kuno's delusional thinking must have rubbed off on her.   
  
"It takes a _lot_ to impress me Kuno-baby and I doubt you have the time to try to do it. But, just because I'm curious and because I'll probably be able to make loads of money by letting Furinkan High know that you're all bark and no bite...bring it on."  
  
"Oh, but you certainly don't think that the Blue Thunder will reduce himself to taking your commands, did you? I thought you were smarter than that Nabiki."   
  
Kuno's smile was making her nervous. She couldn't quite put a finger on it but...Kuno seemed almost...confident.   
  
"Your payment's in my hands. _You_ come to _me_."  
  
He patted the edge of his desk where, if Nabiki wanted the money badly enough, she would sit facing him.   
  
She might as well have given him a lap dance.   
  
Nabiki felt the anger bubble up in her. That jerk.  
  
"Oh no you don't. _I've_ got the pictures."  
  
Kuno's smile grew wider and he placed the money on the table.   
  
"Come on, Nabiki. Have you forgotten that I have a gallery of pictures all over the house and in my room? Whether or not I get this collection from you is of no importance to me. I hope I didn't mislead you with my earlier, less controlled reaction."  
  
He started to count the money and...  
  
'Damn him, he's right' she thought.   
  
"You know I'm right Nabiki."   
  
No. If the fool thought for one minute that she was going to, to _go_ to him...  
  
Contrary to popular belief, the 'Ice Queen' had feminine dignity.   
  
Nabiki rose from the chair, placing the pictures inside the attaché.   
  
"It was nice _not_ doing business with you Kuno-baby." The words seemed foreign to her even as she said them.   
  
She felt her footsteps heavy and it was all she could do not to rush back and tell Kuno that she'd strip for him...just for the money.  
  
"Twenty thousand yen."   
  
He said the words casually, as if the sum weren't enough to feed a starving family in Zimbabwe.  
  
Besides, they still needed to patch up the roof at home and replace the wall that Ryoga had blasted away with one of his depression blasts.  
  
Nabiki sighed. Okay, she'd...go...to him and then he'd give her an inexperienced peck and then it'd be over and she'd be free to spend her money.   
  
That was simple enough.   
  
She took a deep breath and turned back to Kuno.  
  
"I was wondering when you'd up the price. Just so you know, I'm only doing this for the money."   
  
"I know."   
  
It was that simple because, after all, Nabiki Tendo did anything for money.   
  
Kuno didn't have to know that it was more for her family than anything else.   
  
He also didn't have to know that she was...curious...about kissing him...maybe even looking forward to it.   
  
Nabiki dropped the attaché on a nearby chair and walked to Kuno, her deep breaths betraying the nervousness she was feeling at the moment.  
  
It wasn't that she hadn't kissed anyone before, not exactly.   
  
Well, truth was, she hadn't.   
  
Everyone assumed that, because she was so aggressive when it came to business and was a bit more experienced in some areas then she'd naturally have the opportunity to kiss someone.   
  
Unfortunately, this could not have been farther from the truth. Nabiki, with her stone cold expressions and her notorious reputation as the woman who'd get you to sell your mother's soul to her intimidated guys.   
  
Truth be told, she scared the hell outta them.   
  
Oh, they eyed her whenever she passed by. She did, after all, wear the two favorite colors of any guy who read xxx manga...short and tight.   
  
But that was as far as things usually got.   
  
Most of the guys were already chasing after her little sister anyway. Even the bravest of the group would have preferred physical pain to falling under Nabiki's clutches.   
  
After all, you could recover from physical wounds, but once you got into debt with Nabiki, you'd drown in it.  
  
The point was that Nabiki had never been kissed or groped by a guy.   
  
It was the best-kept secret at Furinkan High.  
  
Sometimes she wished that she could let her mask slip a little and be a normal teenage girl with guys following her like a bunch of pathetic, lovesick puppies.   
  
Oh sure, she'd make fun of the idiots that followed her sister around. They were pathetic little boys who wouldn't know what to do with a real woman if they ever found her.   
  
But a part of her wanted to be admired and liked and desired.   
  
Silly Nabiki...she actually had girlish hopes.   
  
Oh how she envied Shampoo.  
  
But being normal and "cute" didn't pay the bills. Besides, you had to give certain things up for money.   
  
That was something Nabiki had learned a long time ago.   
  
Kuno stood as Nabiki sat on the edge of his desk so her feet were dangling. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself.   
  
'Think of it as a business transaction,' she thought.   
  
It seemed easy enough. Just close her eyes and fulfill her end of the bargain.   
  
Simple.   
  
Her heart was thumping and it was Kuno for goodness sake's! Why did she have to-  
  
And suddenly his lips were pressed on hers, softly at first, and then with an urgency that made her tingle all over.   
  
Nabiki froze, completely caught off guard. Dear kami what was she supposed to do now?   
  
Not knowing how [because she knew any idiot could have swindled her out of her money at that moment, her thoughts were so jumbled] she got her wits about her and lost herself in the sensations that imploded in her body.   
  
The kiss was exhilarating and she could feel him cup her cheek with one hand and she smelled his cologne and it was wonderful and kami she wished it would never end!  
  
He wove his fingers through her hair with another hand and they were gentle...and she felt herself responding and it wasn't a simple kiss anymore.   
  
She felt his tongue in her mouth and she knew she had to have stopped breathing because she felt like a deer caught in the headlights.  
  
But it was as if Kuno was sensing what she must have been feeling because he stopped.   
  
And Nabiki didn't want him to.  
  
So she timorously placed _her_ tongue in _his_ mouth and lost herself in the feeling.   
  
Kuno, on the other hand, had stopped thinking for awhile now. Well, he'd stopped thinking altogether ever since he'd entered grade school, but that was beside the point.  
  
He never knew that being with a girl, much less Nabiki, could feel so..._good_. All his fantasies about Akane Tendo and his pig-tailed goddess paled in comparison to this reality.   
  
He was kissing Nabiki Tendo, the girl who had exploited him ever since they'd been children in grade school when she had sold him dirt for 1000 yen.   
  
And she was _kissing him back_.   
  
Kuno caught the faint scent of her perfume and it was so unlike Nabiki. Or maybe it was much like the Nabiki he never got to see.  
  
It was light and sweet and flowed gently, almost cautiously, towards him. It surrounded him and he felt dizzy and exhilarated by it.   
  
Or maybe it was the kiss.   
  
Nabiki, herself was soft and...  
  
Oh what glorious kami could have done him the favor?  
  
Neither noticed that they had been sinking back slowly until Nabiki lay on the desk, her legs around Kuno.   
  
Neither seemed to care that Kuno had started unbuttoning Nabiki's shirt, or that Kuno's had gently placed his hand on her flesh, something that sent chills down both their spines.   
  
It wasn't until there was a soft knock at the door that both reluctantly broke the kiss.  
  
They stared at each other, their eyes communicating.  
  
'I could send whoever it is with the wave of my hand,' his seemed to say.  
  
'I know,' hers replied.  
  
She almost told him to keep going.  
  
Almost.   
  
"Master Kuno?"  
  
He stood, taking her hand so that she too could rise.  
  
"I'm sorry to interrupt Master..."  
  
She ran her hand through her hair trying to put it back into place.  
  
"I would come back later but this is really important."  
  
Kuno turned his back to her so that she could adjust her blouse.   
  
"Master? I know I'm displeasing you but..."  
  
He felt her place her hand on his shoulder and so he turned back, not exactly knowing what to expect.  
  
What if it had all been just part of the bargain?   
  
He wasn't sure how he'd feel about that.  
  
Nabiki surprised him yet again by placing her hands on either side of his head.  
  
She drew his lips to her mouth and kissed him roughly.   
  
When she was done she looked straight into his eyes and whispered something that left him deep in thought hours after he saw her walk away through the office doors.   
  
"That one was on the house."  
  
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Author's Notes:  
First off, I want to thank everyone who's given me feedback on Chapter 1 of 'The Truth.' You guys are truly kind. I'm still trying to work out some of the kinks in the story and yes, I _am_ working on part two but I had to take a break and write this in between. Please be advised that I have found no victims willing to read my work so it might need a bit of editing (well, maybe a lot but just get lost in the moment people! ^_^). I know that Nabiki is extremely OOC but...I don't care! I was inspired one day and I just couldn't let this idea go. It was supposed to be more of a comedy but I just kept getting this image of Nabiki Tendo waving a hatchet at me and yelling: I WANT SOME DARNIT!! (Actually, her speech was filled with more expletives but I had to edit _that_ out.). In any case, I wanted something sweet to happen to both characters and thought it would be cool that it'd start off as part of a deal and then turn into something more. Another inspiration kicked in concerning a Shampoo/Mousse, Ryoga/Ukyo, and Kasumi/Pantyhose Tarou (yes, *Pantyhose*...I've read a few fics that make this pairing extremely appealing). But you'll have to wait for those, at least until I get feedback concerning THIS fic. So how about it? E-mail me simplyshy@hotmail.com [or just leave feedback in the fanfiction.net feedback forum] with C&C. I ALWAYS read them (although I've been delayed in responding but now that school's out I'll be more prompt...promise).   
Well, back to work on "The Truth."  
  
Sonia M.   
  
"Cause I really need somebody, tell me are you that somebody?"-Aaliyah "Are You That Somebody?"  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	2. The Day After

Disclaimer: All the characters belong to Rumiko  
Takahashi and other respective companies and I am  
in no way making any profit from this story. This  
is just for my personal enjoyment and for the  
enjoyment of those who may read this.  
  
Rated: PG-13   
  
Email me with C&C: simplyshy@hotmail.com  
  
**************************************************   
For the Love of Money and A Kiss To Boot: The Day After  
SM  
**************************************************  
  
Nabiki Tendo opened an eye and closed it instantly.  
  
Who the hell had opened the curtains in her room? The sun was bright and the light hurt her eyes.   
  
"Rise and shine sleepyhead." She would have told the girl with the singsong voice to get the hell out had it not been Kasumi Tendo.   
  
You were not rude to Kasumi unless you wanted to feel like the scum of the earth. Besides, Nabiki knew that her oneechan had let her sleep in later than usual.   
  
After all, Nabiki was usually up at the crack of dawn making plans concerning ways to swindle the Furinkan High population out of its hard earned money.   
  
It was all in a day's work.  
  
Nevertheless, her body refused to acknowledge that it was time to get up so she pulled the covers over her head and wondered if maybe, with enough wishing, Kasumi would just disappear.  
  
The covers were suddenly pulled from her and she was left, curled in a ball, with her midriff exposed. Nabiki liked wearing tees and shorts to sleep and they left nothing to the imagination.  
  
"Arggh! Just a few more minutes Kasumi! I had a long night yesterday."  
  
That reminded Nabiki of what had transpired in the Kuno mansion. She had never expected that she'd end up making out on a mahogany table. And with Tatewaki Kuno of all people!  
  
"Well, it must have been a good night if the radiant smile on your face means anything."  
  
Kasumi put her hand on her mouth in an attempt to cover her wicked smile. She was not as oblivious to her surroundings as people thought.  
  
Nabiki had learned that countless times when her oneechan had "accidentally" misplaced her photography equipment and countless pictures had disappeared into thin air.   
  
"Whatever are you talking about big sister? I am simply smiling because I have just remembered that today is my payday."   
  
It wasn't exactly a lie per se. After all, she _did_ have countless debts to collect from many poor souls who had, in moments of desperation, borrowed money from the Ice Queen.  
  
Oh well, it wasn't her fault that they never bothered to read the fine print in her contracts. Besides, although she charged exorbitant amounts of interest on their debts, she usually ended up using that interest to keep Principal Kuno from making them wear hideous uniforms.  
  
Of course, she'd never tell them that.   
  
"No, there's something else Nabs. Might it have something to do with the fact that you didn't come home from the Kuno mansion until two o'clock in the morning?"  
  
Nabiki could have sworn that there was an unusual gleam in Kasumi's eyes but that couldn't be.   
  
After all, Kasumi wasn't one to notice such things. Wasn't she?  
  
A knock on the door saved Nabiki from having to answer the question. She had decided before going to sleep last night that she'd rather not tell anyone about the 'incident.'   
  
Nabiki wasn't sure quite sure what to make of it.  
  
"Hurry up Nabiki, we're going to be late!"  
  
Just like any little sister, Akane was usually the pest in Nabiki's life but she was, at that moment, a wonderful blessing.  
  
It would have been extremely difficult to make up a lie in face of Kasumi's all-knowing nature.   
  
Kasumi had never quite fooled Nabiki with her "don't mind me" impression.   
  
One day, she'd get Kasumi to tell all and she'd write a book containing juicy tidbits of all that the eldest Tendo daughter had seen during her lifetime.  
  
The amount of money she'd make off such a book gave her a newfound energy and she was ready to go in a matter of minutes.   
  
She jogged after Ranma and Akane, not exactly looking forward to what lay ahead of her.  
  
Nabiki was, of course, thinking of Tatewaki Kuno and THE kiss.   
  
It was one thing to lose yourself in the heat of the moment and quite another to face the person whose tongue had been in your mouth the day after.   
  
Besides, Nabiki wasn't quite sure what Kuno had thought of THE kiss and, besides, she still didn't know if she was ready for her and Kuno's relationship to change.  
  
Up until now, she had been quite content with the way things were.  
  
She took advantage of Kuno's weakness concerning her little sister and the 'Red Haired Goddess" and Kuno kept the money coming.  
  
It was as simple as that.  
  
Nabiki's train of thought was broken by Ranma's startled cry as Onna-Ranma took his place.   
  
That was routine and Nabiki liked that.  
  
The ladle lady's aim never failed and Ranma never spent a morning without having to go to Tofu's to get hot water.  
  
Routine was comfort and Nabiki wasn't so sure she wanted _hers_ changed.  
  
As they approached the gates of Furinkan High she spotted Kuno, standing tall and proud as always, with his bokken raised in the air.  
  
She could describe what was about to transpire even before it happened.   
  
"Oh beauteous 'pig-tailed goddess,' your grace never fails..."  
  
Nabiki mouthed the words with him even as he spoke them.  
  
Kuno turned as he heard a voice break into his well-practiced speech.  
  
"To impress the eyes of the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High."  
  
All eyes were on Nabiki and she blushed a crimson red.  
  
She had not realized that she'd spoken the words aloud.  
  
"Nabi-Tendo..."  
  
Kuno's expression softened as his eyes met hers and, for a brief second she though that he would make a move to approach her.  
  
But that would mean that he'd bring up last night's events and...  
  
"Yeah Kuno-baby, we know the speech. How about you pay me to write you a new one?"  
  
That was better and _much_ safer. It was easier to slip on her comfortable mask of indifference than to face the foreign feelings that were surging up inside her.  
  
It was better because she didn't have to sit and wonder why her heart was beating rapidly with Kuno only a few feet away.  
  
She also didn't have to ask herself why she felt angry that Kuno had not greeted her with that same speech she had just ridiculed.   
  
No, she wouldn't have to explain to her heart why it was that Kuno had not thought enough of their kiss to stop chasing after Onna-Ranma.   
  
And Nabiki would _not_ have to admit to herself that she felt jealous, yes _jealous_, that Kuno's affections towards her didn't seemed to have changed even a tiny bit.  
  
So she didn't mind it when Kuno slipped on that familiar arrogance like gloves and replied, his tone icy.  
  
"I would not mind paying for your *services* if you didn't charge such ridiculous amounts for them."  
  
For a brief moment Nabiki felt the unfamiliar presence of tears in her eyes. But that couldn't be because the Ice Queen _never_ cried.   
  
The moment passed as she raised her head and squared her shoulders. Even as she made her way towards him, the sway of her hips taunting him and her eyes shooting daggers, she thought how she wanted to humiliate him, make him pay for making her feel so damned vulnerable.  
  
But doing so would mean admitting that his words had stung and that her pride had been wounded. And Nabiki Tendo would rather meet Death at the hands of her little sister's cooking than do that.  
  
So she did the next best thing...  
  
She made sure that Kuno was looking straight into her eyes as she reached him and spoke to him, loud enough so that he, and only he, heard her.  
  
"I...have...feelings...too."  
  
And much to everyone's amazement, Nabiki Tendo, short miniskirt be damned, gave Kuno Tatewaki a kick to the midsection and finished him off as her attaché connected with his head.  
*************************************  
  
Tatewaki Kuno opened his eyes and was met with the familiar sight of the white ceiling that could only mean one thing.  
  
He had incurred the wrath of the kami in some way he could not understand and they had sentenced him to a place he knew like the back of his hand.  
  
The school infirmary.  
  
He waited until his head stopped throbbing before trying to recall the events that led to his present state.  
  
There had been nothing unusual about the day.  
  
He had begun his days as he always did, by visiting his Akane/Pig-Tailed Goddess shrine, making sure Kodachi had taken her medication, rushing to be the first at the school gates, giving his daily "ode to the goddesses," insulting Nabiki Tendo---  
  
Kuno stopped, his eyebrows furrowed as he recalled that last thought.  
  
Nabiki Tendo had taunted him with her saucy voice and he had responded...  
  
By being the same cur he often accused the foul sorcerer Ranma of being.  
  
But that wasn't possible because he and Nabiki had shared something that had made him wonder if he wasn't wasting his time by chasing ghosts.  
  
Besides, what he had said to the middle Tendo had not warranted the beating she had given him.  
  
The more he thought about it the more he was convinced that he had just been victim to a woman's foul mood.  
  
He would have convinced himself had he not suddenly remembered that Nabiki had told him something before she had proceeded to bash him to unconsciousness.  
  
"I...have...feelings...too."  
  
That was odd...the only reason she would have made such a remark was if he...  
  
Had wounded said feelings.  
  
But all he had told her was that...  
  
She charged too much for her *services*.   
  
And they had kissed the day before.  
  
And Nabiki had charged him for the kiss.  
  
But she had caught him off guard by giving him _another_ kiss and had made sure that he knew that the kiss was too special to be part of a deal.  
  
So that he, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High, would not think that _all_ her services were to be bought.  
  
And those were the same services he had accused her of charging him for.  
  
Tatwaki Kuno was, for the most part of his life, a clueless-arrogant-thoughtless-jackass, at least that was what others whispered about him behind his back.  
  
But he had never seen what others saw in him and it wasn't the best feeling in the world to realize that they were right.  
  
It was like looking in the mirror and seeing yourself in a new light, and not a pleasant one at that.  
  
He had claimed many victories before, victories he made sure everyone knew about.  
  
But wounding Nabiki Tendo, and wounding her as deeply and cruelly as he had, was not a victory that Tatewaki Kuno was proud to claim.  
  
_No one_ had ever broken Nabiki's spirit. She was independent, headstrong, ruthless, conniving...  
  
He admired those qualities as much as he loathed them.  
  
And yet he had seen a side of Nabiki last night that he was sure not many besides her family had seen.  
  
She had been weak in the face of passion and what passion she had!  
  
There was not doubt in Kuno's mind that only a man worthy of her affections could make such a passion rise in her.  
  
Last night _he_ had been that worthy man.   
  
Winning those affections would not be an easy task but the end result...that would certainly have been a prize worth receving.  
  
She had been affected by the kiss just as much as he had and she had softened beneath him and he could have sworn that he'd seen her give a sigh of pleasure.  
  
  
It was as if a door had opened just enough so that Kuno could see that what was inside was worth striving for.   
  
Today's happenings had certainly ruined that and Kuno could almost hear the door slammed unceremoniously in his face.  
  
But things were never so bad that they could not be fixed.   
  
The only problem was, that any problems Kuno had, and he certainly had many, were usually resolved by throwing a few dollar bills someone's way.  
  
That certainly wouldn't work in this situation, Kuno had enough common sense to know that much.  
  
Kuno decided that he had to think seriously about a way to amend his wrongdoing.   
  
There were also other matters, both concerning a blue-haired and a voluptuous pig-tailed goddess.   
  
  
It was a good thing, he decided, that the infirmary was the perfect place to begin.  
  
************************  
"Oneechan, you want a bite of my sushi?"  
  
Nabiki looked up at Akane, whose chopsticks were extended in offering.  
  
"No thanks Akane, I'm not too hungry right now."  
  
Akane chewed her lip in thought before breaking into a smile.  
  
"Kasumi-chan made it."  
  
Nabiki breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
"Well, in that case..."  
  
Both sisters broke into giggles before eating in silence.  
  
"I forgot to ask, why exactly are you sitting with me when you're usually at Ranma's side, breaking into fits of jealous rage whenever Ukyo drops by to feed him?"  
  
Akane blushed slightly and looked to where Ranma was sitting with a crowd of boys, no doubt dodging questions concerning whether or not he had "hit it" yet.  
  
"Well, I told Ranma that you looked like you needed some company so he offered to suffer through a round of "twenty questions" with the Hentai Horde."  
  
Nabiki sighed, wondering how, as violent as Akane was, she had a guy who'd do something so sweet for her.  
  
"Yeah, well, you didn't have to do that on my account. Besides, I'm used to eating by myself, remember?"  
  
She gave Akane a forced smile.  
  
Akane did not miss the sadness in Nabiki's eyes and was alarmed by it. Her oneechan wasn't usually so...down.   
  
"Does your mood have anything to do with what Kuno said earlier this morning? Really onee, you know how Kuno can be sometimes. I don't really think he means to be so harsh it's just that, well, all guys are naturally stupid and Kuno's just got that extra amount to deal with."  
  
Under normal circumstances, Nabiki would have certainly agreed with that comment but...it depressed her knowing that all of what Akane had said _wasn't_ true.   
  
Last night, she had seen a glimpse of who Tatch-Kuno really was and it wasn't all stupidity.  
  
Sure, it was 85% stupidity...she really couldn't argue with that. But there was a side of him that she wanted to explore further before she decided that Kuno was just a waste of her time.  
  
The sad thing was, she suspected that she *wouldn't* be wasting her time if she explored the strange feelings that had been borne from the kiss.  
  
But to do that, Kuno would have to get a clue (or buy one, he was rich enough), get rid of his obsession for both Akane and Onna-Ranma, and become a semi normal human being.  
  
And dammit she was not about to wait until she was in her mid forties for that to happen!  
  
"Akane, when did you know that Ranma loved you, I mean _really_ loved you?"  
  
Nabiki turned to her little sister, her face in earnest and waited for an answer. By the looks of it, she would have to wait awhile because her sister looked no less than stunned by the question.  
  
"Well," she chewed on her lower lip, her trademark whenever she was uncertain about something, "I don't really have an answer to that question. There's no _one_ thing that tells you something like that."  
  
She hurried on when she noticed her oneechan give a depressed sigh.  
  
"But there are small clues, you know. Like the way he's taken my tantrums and stuck with me through everything. Heck, the fact that he's still here at all tells me something."  
  
Akane broke into that contagious smile and Nabiki had no doubt as to why Ranma wouldn't mind waking up next to her if that was what he would see every day.  
  
"The point is, you never really _know_. Like with me, there are always those doubts and there will always be bad things...but I think, I think love is something you _feel_ and as long as that feeling's there you know that you're okay."  
  
Nabiki couldn't help but grin at Akane's helpless expression. Her little sister obviously had no idea how much she'd actually told her.  
  
Her little speech may have been a bit choppy and jumbled but Nabiki knew that whatever it meant to be in love was certainly powerful and obviously hard to explain.  
  
She guessed that she'd have to experience it to really know what Akane was talking about.   
  
Unfortunately, love didn't seem to be coming to her anytime soon and not with Kuno.   
  
Of course, not with Kuno.   
  
Besides, Nabiki Tendo was fine as long as she had her confidence and self-respect...and her money, of course.  
  
"Eeee! Ran-maaa!"  
  
Nabiki barely had time to duck before Ranma's water pistol shot a spray of water at her unsuspecting sister.  
  
"You've always gotta be prepared Akane!"  
  
He gave her his boyish grin and bounded off in laughter.   
  
Her sister followed, growling in mock anger. She couldn't hide her infatuation with him even when she tried.  
  
Suddenly, Nabiki didn't doubt for a second that she would have given any of the above up if it meant she could be as carefree as those two.   
***********************  
"Look Sayuri, I've given you an extended period of time to pay off that debt only because you're one of my sister's closest friends but enough's enough."  
  
Nabiki gave the younger girl a menacing glare before proceeding with her rant and rave session.  
  
"Now when exactly do you plan on giving me the money?"  
  
The younger girl looked down, tears spilling down her cheeks.  
  
"Nabiki, money's tight around the house ever since my grandma had to go to the hospital---"  
  
"Your grandma's dead, Sayuri."  
  
"Er, I mean, ever since my dad got pneumonia-"  
  
"Your dad HAD pneumonia for about a week and I do remember sending quite an expensive bouquet of fresh flowers for exactly that occasion. Now, I'm getting tired of these pathetic attempts to avoid answering the question."  
  
She took a step toward the girl but was stopped as an arrow flew just inches before her nose before stopping at the oldest weeping willow in Furinkan High.  
  
"Wha--?"  
  
There was a piece of paper attached to the arrow, bound to it with a blue ribbon.   
  
"Really, Nabiki, I'm saving up the money but it's really hard when you have a family of ten to feed..."   
  
Nabiki pulled the arrow from the tree and opened the paper. A light blush filled her cheeks as she read the contents of said paper.  
  
"You only have a mother and two sisters Sayuri," she replied, absentmindedly.  
  
The piece of paper felt like fire in her hands and it was all she could do not to drop it.   
  
"Nabiki please oh please I promise to pay you as soon as my great uncle Tomo gets out of his coma- -"  
  
But Nabiki was too preoccupied reading the paper to pay much attention to the babbling girl. With a wave of her hand she dismissed her and Sayuri did not need to be told twice to get lost.   
  
"Whatcha doin'?"  
  
Nabiki jumped, startled by Ranma's sudden appearance.   
  
"Damn, Ranma, have you ever heard of giving a warning before sneaking up on somebody?!"  
  
Ranma raised an eyebrow and looked at Nabiki curiously.  
  
"That would defeat the whole purpose of it being a sneak attack Nabiki. 'Sides, whoever heard of a martial artist giving away his position? That's dumb."  
  
His eyes traveled to the piece of paper in her hands.  
  
"What's that, did you get someone else to sell you their soul?"   
  
He jumped over Nabiki just as she took a swing at him with the arrow.   
  
"Ha ha funny-boy. Shouldn't you be escaping Akane's wrath?"   
  
Ranma snickered.  
  
"Nah, that tomboy's too slow for me. You have to get up pretty early in the morning to---"  
  
Nabiki gave him a smug smile and almost laughed as she watched Ranma's confidence fade away.  
  
"She's behind me, isn't she?"  
  
It gave Nabiki great pleasure to confirm his suspicion and watching him close his eyes and ready himself for the unstoppable hyperspacial mallet was utterly hilarious.  
  
Fortunately for Ranma, the blow never came as Akane simply dumped a bucket of ice cold water on him.  
  
A very grumpy Onna-Ranm proceeded to wring out her shirt.  
  
"Violent, angry, short tom---"  
  
To both Nabiki's and Ranma's surprise Akane merely gave the red headed girl a wink before placing a soft kiss on the girl's nose.  
  
"You can go meet me in the gym as soon as you find some hot water," she told him, her voice sultry.  
  
Ranma watched, mouth agape, as she skipped off in that direction.  
  
"Well what are you waiting for?? Go get that hot water, dummy!"  
  
Ranma closed and opened his mouth once more before nodding with nodding, purpose in his eyes.  
  
And then he was off on his journey to find the ever-elusive hot water that would turn him male and bring him rewards left only to everyone's imaginations (AN: or until I write a side story about it...*wink*).   
  
Nabiki sighed before taking another look at the piece of paper in her hand:  
  
Meet me after school in the secluded field behind the school...alone.  
TK  
  
It was silly, really and yet...she'd always wondered if she'd ever get an offer to take a romp through the fields of Furinkan High.  
  
Feh, who needed to go to a secluded place with a tall, handsome guy who could...?  
  
"Where do you suppose Nabiki's running off to?" Hiroshi turned to his partner in all crimes that are Hentai, Daisuke.   
  
"I dunno, probably off to swindle money out of the prayer group. How'm I supposed to know?"  
  
Hiroshi looked off and marvelled at Nabiki's grace and agility. The chick had some seriously sexy legs on her.  
  
"Well, wherever she's going she sure is in a hurry. Wonder what has her in such a rush?"  
  
"I dunno Hiro, but I just heard that a wet Onna-Ranma is jumping AND running and you know what that means..."  
  
The two adolescent youths looked at each other before shouting in unison...  
  
"Beatiful, bodacious, bouncing boobies!"  
  
And thus, even as two of Furinkan High's most unlikely people were about to meet for an either romantic or very violent tryst (make that two, can't forget about Ranma and Akane) the two hentais were off on their quest to find a redhead with bouncing breasts.  
  
And all was right with the world.   
  
***************************************************  
  
Pre-Author's Notes: I wanted to end it with Nabiki running off, really I did but Hiroshi and Daisuke just showed up and...the potential for comedy was there and what can a novice writer like myself do except seize the opportunity? LOL. I intended for the story to end here but my imagination begged for another part so you'll just have to wait for this story's conclusion in the next chapter (unless Hiroshi and Daisuke show up again and get me sidetracked once more).  
  
Author's Notes: Is this it for our unlikely couple? Not likely. I might find a way to fit in this relationship to The Truth or other stories. I like Kuno and Nabiki like this. Affectionate yet...themselves. What? You didn't know Sayuri was a pathological liar? It's a fact that has been well hidden in the Ranma community for years. Besides, she had to do a lot of lying to keep Akane's self esteem up: "Of COURSE Ranma thinks you're a good cook, Akane." LOL. Tell me what you thought of it. Oh, and don't mind Nabiki being OOC. It's just that, as a woman, she's got needs too ya know! LOL. As always, e-mail me with C&C at smijaresc@my-deja.com or review this part at fanfiction.net.   
  
Later,  
  
Sonia M.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	3. In The Fields

Disclaimer: All the characters belong to Rumiko  
Takahashi and other respective companies and I am  
in no way making any profit from this story. This  
is just for my personal enjoyment and for the  
enjoyment of those who may read this.  
  
Rated: PG-13   
  
Email me with C&C: simplyshy@hotmail.com  
  
**************************************************   
For the Love of Money and A Kiss To Boot: In The Fields  
SM  
**************************************************  
Nabiki came to a halt by a willow tree as soon as she reached the Furinkan High field.   
  
She almost fell to the ground and chided herself for running so damn fast. Just because there was the possibility that one of the school's more hunky, athletic, and charming (in his own demented sort of way) guys was probably waiting for her with open arms did not mean she had to run off to meet him like some two cent tramp.  
  
  
No, a brisk walk and maybe a slow jogging pace would have been good enough.  
  
In any case, she scanned the field looking for some sort of showy arrangement that Kuno may have orchestrated in order to show her how deeply ashamed he was of his earlier attitude towards her.  
  
  
Nothing.  
  
Her head shot up...maybe he had hired a hot air balloon or better yet, a blimp with a message stating that he was a thoughtless, arrogant jackass who deserved no less than to get beaten to a pulp by the kendoist club.   
  
No such display.  
  
More than a little annoyed at the moment, Nabiki narrowed her eyes, looking down at her watch.   
  
Oh, she grinned sheepishly, she had been a tad early.  
  
Well, judging from her rapidly beating heart and the sweat that was traveling down her arms and neck she had been a bit too eager to make it to the meeting point.   
  
Actually, she had arrived fifteen minutes before the allotted time, which was just as well.  
  
That gave her time to think about how long she should make Kuno beg for forgiveness. She'd also have to practice keeping her face emotionless for a long period of time, just to make him nervous.  
  
Her devious thoughts were interrupted by a pair of screaming voices followed by a girlish squeal.  
  
"Dammit Hiro...how many times do I hafta tell ya that I'm still the same GUY, Ranma Saotome, and that even *I* do NOT like having these---breasts touched?"  
  
Nabiki shuddered. Oh dear kami.  
  
"C'mon Ranma! We're your friends, and what's a grope or two amongst friends? Besides, it's just *harmless* groping."  
  
Hiroshi signaled to Daisuke to get behind the redhead so that Ranma could neither run forward nor back.   
  
"There's nowhere to go Ranma-chan. Just stand there like a good little girl and let your friends have some fun."  
  
Daisuke gave Ranma a lecherous grin that would have made Happosai, master of the Anything Goes When Trying to Cop a Feel art extremely proud.   
  
It was interesting to see, really. Any stranger who happened to wander onto the grounds of the school would have certainly thought that a helpless redhead was about to be molested by two lecherous and utterly pathetic pubescent boys.   
  
That stranger would have then learned that this was no ordinary redhead. This was a redhead who would have kicked a pair of teenage butts had they not belonged to two of her only normal (and the term is used loosely) friends.   
  
Any stranger would have then witnessed a remarkable turn of events as the redhead suddenly jumped straight up into the air only to land on a branch directly above the resting Nabiki Tendo.   
  
At this point, most strangers decided that they either needed to get a stronger medication from their doctors or they that this was the Japanese version of the Twilight Zone and they had accidentally stumbled upon it.   
  
Others just fainted and woke up only to discard it as some sort of weird dream.  
  
In any case, Daisuke and Hiroshi were forced to run for their dear lives as Onna-Ranma shot small twigs at them.  
  
Normally, twigs wouldn't have fazed even the most unathletic person (in the Ranmaverse this does, of course, refer to Gosungki).   
  
But when said twigs were being thrown at 100mph by Ranma Saotome...they hurt like hell.  
  
And thus the Hentai Duo retreated, not in shame, but with a deep disappointment that they had been unsuccessful in their attempts to feel the buxom redhead's breasts.  
  
For Nabiki Tendo this was the best form of entertainment and her laughter easily caught Ranma's attention.  
  
"Hey, Nabiki. Weren't ya supposed to collect some debts today?"  
  
He waited for Nabiki's laughter to subside.  
  
"Yeah. I collected most, except Sayuri's but as long as the interest grows, I'm happy. Weren't you supposed to go get some hot water so you and Akane can..talk?"  
  
Nabiki looked up at Ranma, her eyebrow raised and the redhead shifted uncomfortably.  
  
"Well, I woulda 'cept those two idiots blocked my way with some talk about me jumping and doing splits and stuff. Boys...feh."  
  
Ranma executed a jump off of the tree's branch and landed softly beside Nabiki.  
  
"So, what're you doing here? As far as I know, sitting in the fields where your best Prita suit can get dirtied isn't exactly your thing."  
  
Ranma's last comment caused Nabiki to promptly roll her eyes. Really, she knew Ranma was uncouth and a bit dense but honestly, was it that hard to remember that they were *Prada* suits?  
  
"I can easily take it to the cleaners and let _them_ worry about getting stains out. Besides, it's none of your business that I'm here for a business meeting."  
  
Now, Ranma Saotome was not exactly the smartest or the brightest of the Furinkan bunch but he knew that it was not like Nabiki to conduct _any_ business transaction in the fields. But then again, she was right...it wasn't any of his business and after thinking about it for a second or two he decided that he didn't particularly care what Nabiki was up to as long as it didn't concern him, a bathing suit, and a Polaroid.  
  
  
He gave Nabiki a skeptical look and shrugged his shoulders.   
  
"Well, I'll go ahead and leave you alone to your...waiting-I guess that's what you're doing-so's I can go look for Akane before she comes after ME."  
  
He shuddered before running off, glancing around nervously for any signs of   
Hiroshi and Daisuke.  
  
Nabiki gave a wistful sigh and looked at her watch once more. That little scene between the Hentais and Ranma had taken up about ten minutes, which meant that, if Kuno was as prompt as he usually was, she still had about five minutes left to spare.  
  
She wondered what the rich kendoist had planned for her. Maybe he had hired a private jet that would land in the middle of the field and whisk her off to some exotic resort where she could lounge around without any worries.  
  
Or maybe he was planning to take her on a hot air balloon ride where he would show her the stars and confess that none shone brighter than her lovely eyes.  
  
Bleh, that was too much, even for her. Nabiki was too practical for such romantic nonsense and, although she had often dreamed of being wooed in such a fashion the actual thought that someone would actually go through with it made her more than a bit nauseous.   
  
  
She stood up and stretched her arms out above her. When the time came for Kuno to appear, she'd decide whether or not he had done enough to accept his apology.   
  
That reminded her of the spiteful things he'd said earlier and Nabiki decided that it'd take a helluva lot for Kuno to earn her forgiveness.  
  
She stared off into the horizon and was surprised to see that the sun had begun its decent. It was actually quite beautiful and she wondered how she'd failed to notice that this was a great place to watch the sun set.  
  
Hmm. That meant a great money earning opportunity. She could set up bleachers at the exact spot and charge the students for the chance to see the spectacular show. Nabiki felt the familiar tingle go through her body as she imagined the amount of money she could make when couples tried to think of something to do for Valentine's Day.   
  
Sometimes her panache for making money impressed even her.  
  
She closed her eyes and took a gulp of the fresh evening air. So this was what her mother had meant when she said that solitude wasn't always a bad thing.  
  
Suddenly, a sweet aroma invaded her senses, and Nabiki recognized it as the smell of her favorite flowers...violets.  
  
She also recognized the scent of the cologne coming from the person holding the bouquet close to her face.   
  
The anger and hurt she had felt earlier resurfaced and she almost gave into the urge to open her eyes and bop the intruder over the head with said bouquet.   
  
But something stopped her. For some strange reason, she stayed still and decided to let Kuno make the first move.   
  
"I did a little investigating and found out that you like violets so I bought them for you."  
  
Nabiki said nothing.  
  
"I thought it was a bit odd, you know, seeing how violets are not as extravagant as the things you usually like but...there are a lot of things I don't know about you."  
  
Kuno sighed and looked at Nabiki's face. He'd never noticed the way her eyelashes curled softly and the way her eyebrows were arched in such a way that it was easy for her to give her trademarked sarcastic looks.  
  
She obviously wasn't about to make things easy for him.  
  
"I was a jerk earlier..for saying what I said, I mean."  
  
Nabiki's expression changed to an inquisitive one and that gave Kuno some hope that he wouldn't have to resort to begging in order to get her to forgive him.  
  
"It wasn't meant, I mean I didn't want..."  
  
Kuno ran a hand through his hair being careful not to drop the bouquet in his other hand.   
  
"Sometimes I just don't think and that gets me into trouble, you know?"  
  
He laughed softly and reached for Nabiki's hand.  
  
It was, unsurprisingly, soft and feminine.  
  
Kuno placed his hand over hers and gingerly unclenched her hands and placed the bouquet in her palm.  
  
He closed her fingers once more and let his own hand drop beside him.  
  
"I did a lot of thinking while I was in the infirmary, Nabiki. Yeah, believe it or not the great Kuno Tatewaki is able to think logically and rationally once in a while."  
  
Nabiki suppressed a smile...he still hadn't said enough for her to forgive him.  
  
"Last night...last night I felt something I hadn't felt before."  
  
Kuno leaned against the same tree Nabiki was resting on and stuck his hands in his pockets.  
  
"Not with your sister. Not with the pig-tailed go-...with the red-haired girl."  
  
He tried to find the right words to let her know exactly what he meant.  
  
"It didn't have anything to do with fantasies or lust, well maybe it had a little to do with lust, but..."  
  
Kuno looked down and kicked at the patch of grass beneath him.  
  
"I was _intrigued_, Nabiki. For the first time in my life I actually wanted to know more about a girl."  
  
Nabiki raised her hand as if to touch him but stopped and let it drop once more.  
  
"With the others it's usually just, a game. To see how many girls I can add to this, this fantasy I have of being this god at Furinkan High and..."  
  
There was a brief silence as Kuno seemed to be at a loss as to what to say.  
  
"And with me?"  
  
Kuno looked over at Nabiki, who had opened her eyes, which looked back at him in earnest.  
  
"How am I any different from your pig-tailed goddess and my beauteous oneechan?"  
  
Kuno licked his lips, wondering how it was that they could be so damned dry.  
  
"With you I felt this need to get to know you and be with you. You're more than just a fantasy...you're, you're a goal."  
  
Nabiki was startled as Kuno grabbed one of her hands and raised it to his cheek.  
  
"I know you're not about to make it easy for me and I deserve that but unlike other times...this time-"  
  
His eyes were ablaze with defiance and Nabiki fought down the urge to take him right then and there.   
  
Damn, he was good.  
  
Oddly, their roles were now reversed, as Nabiki was the one who stood just as Kuno had the night before after she had given him the second kiss.  
  
Kuno cupped her chin in his hands and raised her face to him as kissed her.  
  
This kiss was not like the ones they had shared the night before. It was soft, gentle and, much to Nabiki's surprise, uncertain.  
  
After it was done Kuno leaned down to whisper in _her_ ear and everything was surreal in Nabiki's mind.  
  
"I'm willing to pay the price."  
  
And that was how Nabiki Tendo was left standing alone in the fields, a bouquet of violets in her hand and a shocked expression on her face.  
****************************************************************************  
  
Author's Notes: Wow. So many Nabiki+Kuno fans out there (well, actually, only 18 have read this 'fic but I'm sure there are many more who will stumble upon it sometime soon). Let's see, I had to make them a little more OOC during the second half of the story because I vowed to give Nabiki her girlish fantasy and she got it. Things should get back to normal after Nabiki snaps out of it and now _she_ is the one who will have to respond to Kuno's request by going after _him_. I.e., her serve. Now she has to give *Kuno* some sort of response and it won't exactly be the one Kuno' hoping for. I know Kuno's speech is, I dunno, a bit exaggerated but I couldn't imagine him saying anything other than what he's said in this piece. These words are ten times more flowery and romantic than all the nonsense he spouts at his beauteous Akane Tendo and his pig-tailed goddess. And they're a lot easier to understand. Give me feedback on this chapter...I'm really having fun with the story. As always, either leave comments in the fanfiction.net feedback forum or write me smijaresc@my-deja.com   
  
Until next time,  
Sonia M.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	4. What's Next?

Disclaimer: All the characters belong to Rumiko  
Takahashi and other respective companies and I am  
in no way making any profit from this story. This  
is just for my personal enjoyment and for the  
enjoyment of those who may read this.  
  
Rated: PG-13   
  
Email me with C&C: simplyshy@hotmail.com  
  
**************************************************   
For the Love of Money and A Kiss To Boot: What's Next?  
SM  
**************************************************  
"Nabiki?"  
  
Silence.  
  
"Hey Nabs?"   
  
Nothing.  
  
Akane furrowed her brows and snapped her fingers once, but there was still   
no response from the middle Tendo daughter. Ranma stood beside her, in his male   
form, a look of intrigue on his face.  
  
"I've seen this kinda thing happen before, Akane. I saw it on some dubbed   
gaijin show. This girl was abducted by aliens, taken into a spaceship and then-  
--"   
  
"Baka, she's just a little out of it, that's all. I wonder where she got   
those violets from?"  
  
Ranma and Akane, exhausted by their own private activities (AN: Side   
Story, definitely) had come upon Nabiki in the fields of Furinkan High,   
clutching a bouquet of violets in her hands.   
  
"Say...this would be the perfect chance for me to get back that money she   
swindled outta me this month."  
  
Ranma placed a hand on Nabiki's pocket, but was surprised when it was   
swiftly slapped away.  
  
"Not so fast brother-in-law, I'm not THAT out of it. That little attempt   
against my person is going to cost you _another_ month of modeling."  
  
The predatory gleam that everyone knew so well came into Nabiki's eyes and   
Ranma suddenly became nervous.  
  
"Added to the one you owe me that comes to...well, let's just say the male   
population at Furinkan High will be treated to a calendar spread, and I do mean   
spread, of you in various states of undress."  
  
Ranma turned to Akane, confusion in his eyes.  
  
"She means you're going to have to pose for a calendar wearing next to   
nothing. Like you did for the Christmas card, 'Ranko the Readheaded Vixen.'   
Remember that?"  
  
Nabiki was quite proud of that idea. She had made Ranma wear a Santa's   
hat and a ridiculously short red skirt with white fur trim around it. Ranma had   
been lucky on that one occasion though, because the card had never reached the   
hands of the perverted males at Furinkan.  
  
Kuno had bought every single one.  
  
And she'd been able to get great Christmas gifts for the family, so it had   
been an even trade.  
  
Akane grabbed the bouquet out of Nabiki's hands.  
  
"Who gave you these, Nabs? And why is it that we find you here this late   
in the evening completely zoned out?"  
  
Ranma, still shuddering at the thought of having every guy at Furinkan   
ogle his girl form for a year, began his "bitchfest," as Nabiki affectionately   
called it.  
  
"Aw damn Nabiki! It's not fair, why do I always--- say, what exactly   
_are_ you doing standing here all by yourself?"  
  
Nabiki took back her violets and smiled, remembering the way they had been   
given to her. She immediately regained her senses and leveled her eyes on   
Ranma.  
  
"If I wanted to make it your business, I would've done it awhile ago dear   
brother-in-law."  
  
Ranma gulped, and frantically waved his hands in front of him. Nabiki   
never used 'dear' unless she was extremely close to being pissed off.   
  
And everyone knew that a pissed off Nabiki was not good for your health.  
  
"Hey, _Akane_ was the one who brought it up, not me! Uh, I've gotta go   
anyway, I think I---- oh, the hell with it, I'm out."  
  
With that, Ranma Saotome jumped over the school walls and was gone, like   
any man who had an ounce of sense in him.   
  
After all, even he was not match for the bitchiness that would surely   
ensue if he stayed.  
  
"Really, Akane, sometimes your guy just really--- what??!"  
  
Nabiki watched as Akane's eyes widened and her mouth changed, first into a   
grim line of concentration, and suddenly into a huge grin.  
  
"Why Biki, don't tell me that you've got a secret admirer!"   
  
Akane clapped her hands in delight, and grabbed Nabiki's hand, dragging   
her outside the school gates.  
  
"Do you have any idea who it is? Is he walkable...you know, can you walk   
him down the street without putting a paper bag over his head?"  
  
Nabiki had dreaded this moment, and suddenly understood why Akane hated   
having her meddle in her affairs. That wouldn't mean she'd stop, not by any   
means. After all, a substantial amount of the income came from meddling in   
Akane's life.  
  
But she definitely understood.  
  
She sighed, pulling her hand free from her little sister's strong grasp.  
  
"Puhleeeze Akane. As if I'm about to stand here divulging information   
about my love life. You know the drill, pay the fee or bite your tongue."  
  
Nabiki watched her sister stiffen and begin walking off with purpose. She   
looked around, the darkness definitely eerie.  
  
"Hey Akane! Wait up! You can't just leave me behind! There could be   
thugs or worse, Happosai could be on one of his panty raids!"  
  
She shuddered and ran to catch up to her sister.  
  
"Akane, c'mon, what's the big deal?"  
  
Akane stopped and turned to her sister, her eyes exploding with hurt and   
anger.  
  
"I tell you all about what I'm going through, what I'm feeling, my   
problems----I _confide_ in you and what happens when I try to be there for you?   
I have to 'pay the fee'. Well you can take your fee and shove it, because I'm   
tired of having to pay for being your sister!"  
  
She turned around and kept walking and Nabiki suddenly felt shame at   
having told her oneechan to pay a fee. She hadn't really meant it, at least she   
didn't think she had.  
  
Nabiki shook her head, no, she hadn't meant it seriously.  
  
"C'mon Akane, you know I was just kidding. Besides, what makes you think   
I have anything to say at all?"  
  
Akane stopped again, and turned, the expression on her face that of   
someone who is trying to explain things to a small child.   
  
"We find you in the middle of the field after the sun's set, a bouquet of   
flowers in your hand, a goofy expression on your face AND Ranma was able to   
touch your pocketbook... Silly me for thinking you had something to tell."  
  
Nabiki reached out to grab Akane's hand just as she turned to leave.  
  
"Save the drama for someone else, Akane. I'll tell you all about what   
happened, but not here. Too many people hiding in corners, you know what I   
mean?"  
  
The girls walked home, one in awe that her sister had a life that was not   
limited to extortion and the other wishing she had a bottle of sake in her hand   
so she could think clearly---or not think at all, for that matter.  
  
As they reached the two level establishment they called home (or 'Nerima's   
trouble shack', according to Nabiki), Akane turned to her big sister, and placed   
a hand on her shoulder.  
  
"It's late and I'm hungry, so let's do this. Go in, have a bite to eat   
and then we'll meet in your room. After all, it's not as if the spy can be   
spied on, ne?"  
  
Nabiki stuck her tongue out at her sister, but nodded her head in   
agreement. She was proud of the fact that she was privy to the little details   
in everyone else's life but not one single person had ever been able to do the   
same to her.  
  
"Deal. But Akane?"  
  
Akane stopped, and cocked her head to one side.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Ditch the stupid piggy jimmies, okay?"  
  
Nabiki hurried inside, leaving Akane's muffled curses behind her.  
  
************************************************************  
  
He had done it.   
  
It had been difficult because he was, after all, the handsome, talented,   
brilliant, statuesque...  
  
Okay, he'd gone one adjective too far.   
  
Still, he never had to seek, much less chase after, a woman when he wanted   
her. If he wanted a girl, sooner or later she'd come running his way.  
  
Funny, she wouldn't exactly _stop_ when she reached him. Come to think of   
it, most usually ran past and _away_ from him.   
  
Women were curious creatures.  
  
In any case, he had done it. Tatewaki Kuno had actually made, he   
believed, progress where Nabiki Tendo was concerned.  
  
The look on her face when he gave her the flowers would be forever etched   
in his mind.   
  
She had actually smiled at him. Yes, a woman had finally looked at him   
with something more than contempt, disgust, pity.....  
  
The way women usually reacted to him was not at all indicative of the love   
and devotion they held for the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High.   
  
But then again, that was due to the foul sorcerer Ranma, who had somehow   
managed to bewitch the entire female population.   
  
Odd, how the foul sorcerer wasn't ever _around_ the women who rejected him   
when_ they rejected him.   
  
His powers must be greater than he'd thought. Yes, that was it because,   
after all, it couldn't be that the women he wanted didn't want...  
  
No, it was unfathomable that they didn't like...  
  
Did they?  
  
The pig-tailed goddess beat him to a pulp whenever he was anywhere near   
her while the fair Akane Tendo did the same and up until now Nabiki...  
  
How had missed the trend that had developed right before his eyes?   
  
That meant that there was a possibility that...well, he would play the   
"what if" game.  
  
What if the pig tailed goddess really did loathe him as much as she said   
she did and she had, of her own free will, unleashed that hatred by beating him   
senseless each and every time she saw him?  
  
What if Akane Tendo couldn't stand him, loathed him _even more_ than his   
pig-tailed goddess, and that was why he had met her "PMS Year-round Hyperspacial   
Mallet" so many times?   
  
What if he really was just a deluded idiot who couldn't admit that he had   
absolutely no game?  
  
What if his looks, charms, physique, and kami forbid, his riches hadn't   
been enough to gain the interest of any of his beloveds?  
  
Nah.   
  
He easily dismissed those ludicrous thoughts. Why, there was absolutely   
no reason that these lovely dames would reject him or his wonderful charms.  
  
And if there was he certainly wasn't going to admit it. It was ten times   
better to be delusional and experience happiness than give in to the cruel   
realities of life.   
  
Besides, he wasn't hurting anyone with his private obsessions.   
  
Kuno paused at that.   
  
He had a feeling that, with the way things were progressing, Nabiki Tendo   
would soon have a say about his 'obsessions.'   
  
He spun his bokken up and over his head and entered the trance-like state   
that his sister often mocked whenever they were alone.  
  
She called it his "idiot's refuge technique." He still hadn't figured out   
exactly what the meaning behind the title was.  
  
In any case, there was no way that those beautiful creatures could   
actually despise him, could they?  
  
Not that it would matter since he would eventually be forced to forget   
these obsessions of his.   
  
Or would he? He still did not know what Nabiki felt, if anything, about   
the pleasant kiss he'd bestowed upon her that day. What if the foul sorcerer   
Ranma Saotome made her despise him with his evil treachery?   
  
No. He was determined that Nabiki Tendo would be the one desired woman he   
HAD to woo. Besides, he had the money and, if there was anything that he knew   
Nabiki loved more than the power she wielded...it was money.  
  
Kuno frowned. He didn't much like the idea that Nabiki Tendo would be   
with him for money. Heck, he was a bit annoyed that ANY woman would be with him   
for his excessively abundant riches.   
  
After all, his suave personality and charming good looks and...  
  
He sighed. He had to face the ugly truth: no woman could be conquered   
that easily. Especially not Nabiki Tendo.  
  
Even if he WAS the epitome of masculinity.   
-------  
  
Nabiki sat at her computer, eyes narrowed as she sat at her desk going   
over her daily calculations.   
  
How was it that she was 500 yen short of her average daily profits? She   
had to stop thinking about the damn violets or her skills as loan shark would   
soon be lacking.  
  
She blushed and glanced at the said violets, which had been placed in a   
small crystal vase. They really were quite beautiful.   
  
Besides, it wouldn't hurt her to think about her love life for once in her   
life. After all, money wasn't every---  
  
Nabiki gasped in horror. Never in her life had she muttered, much less   
THOUGHT those words.   
  
She suddenly felt ashamed and inexplicably dirty.   
  
Damn that Kuno Tatewaki and his dashing good looks and Shakespearean   
babble and...  
  
What exactly had gotten into her? She had to snap out of it or she might   
actually admit that she LIKED Tatewaki.   
  
Or that she could actually fall in LO---  
  
No. Not with Kuno. ESPECIALLY not with Kuno.  
  
She placed her hands behind her head and thought back on what she could only   
loosely call Kuno's and her relationship.  
  
Nabiki could still remember the day that Tatewaki Kuno had entered her   
life.   
  
She'd been marveling at the yen that her father had given her, amazed by   
the way that the silver coin glistened in the sun*.   
  
Yes, that was also the day she'd become completely, utterly and   
unabashedly enthralled with money.   
  
In any case, she had been minding her own business, not wanting to mingle   
with the other girls in the playground who, to her complete and utter horror,   
did not want to get into a discussion about the wonders of the Japanese yen.  
  
Suddenly, out of nowhere, she'd felt herself falling forward flat on her   
face, the yen coin falling out of her hands and watched it roll into the blades   
of grass.   
  
"It is I, Tatewaki Kuno! But stop! What sight through Donder's widow   
bakes---"  
  
At the sound of that high-pitched voice Nabiki had, while still in a   
sitting position, turned to see who had dared to trip her, much less put their   
hands on her.   
  
Now that she thought back on that moment, she had to laugh at the   
absurdity of all.   
  
What she'd seen standing there was a boy about her height, miniature   
bokken in one hand, a book of Shakespearean sonnets in the other.  
  
"...it is the beast, and Juliet weighs a ton!"  
  
Nabiki hadn't known much about Shakespeare, she was only seven after all,   
but what she was almost certain that what the boy had spoken were not the words   
of the poet.   
  
She had suddenly become aware that she was sitting on the grass, her new   
outfit ruined with grass stains.   
  
"You baka! Look what you did!"  
  
Tatewaki had, thankfully, stopped his intense study of the book long   
enough to glance at the brunette sprawled on the ground.  
  
"Oh bootious lady! It is I, Tatewaki---"  
  
"Yeah, yeah, you already went through the hellos but how 'bout you help   
me up...or didn't your mommy and daddy teach you how to be a gentaman?"   
  
Tatewaki had been so flustered but had regained some composure and...well,   
even then he had been a Kuno.  
  
"Pardon me sweet!"   
  
It was odd how she remembered the feeling of his soft, warm hand in her   
own. And the way he'd smiled at her with that goofy grin on his face. It was a   
grin that she rarely saw now that they were adults.   
  
But they were just children then and she couldn't quite understand why she   
felt like blushing or why she felt herself smiling.   
  
"May I ask what name of a rose it is that I may call you by?"  
  
Nabiki had to admit that his accuracy at quoting Shakespeare and speaking   
in the old English tongue had vastly improved over the years.   
  
The fact that no one knew what the hell he was talking about, she had to   
admit hadn't.   
  
"Huh?"  
  
Tatewaki had sighed, rolling his eyes in annoyance.  
  
"What's your name?"  
  
Even then she hadn't appreciated the way he'd been able to sound so   
condescending.   
  
"There's a fee, you know. One hundred yen."   
  
He'd looked much like anyone who'd ever heard her utter those words.   
  
Incredulous.  
  
"What's in a name?"  
  
In Nabiki's world there was a lot.  
  
"Well, I dunno, but in mine it's two hundred yen."   
  
She'd seen that same indignant that she now saw countless times whenever   
Ranko or Akane made him taste dirt.  
  
"You said one hundred!"  
  
"Yeah, well I just remembered that you owe me for the outfit, baka!"   
  
Of course, at the time she failed to mention that her mother hadn't spent  
nearly a third of what she was asking, but what would it hurt to leave out a   
detail or two?  
  
Besides, by today's standards, she'd been TOO easy on him.  
  
He'd actually paid the price too and Nabiki still couldn't believe that a   
first grader would have so much money on him.   
  
"My name's Tendo Nabiki and if you want to know anything else...it'll cost   
ya."   
  
Kuno'd just chuckled and said something that she would refuse to reveal   
until the kamis themselves dragged it out of her.  
  
Or, until someone paid the right price.   
  
No, this secret was too precious, no matter what the offer.   
  
She still remembered the way he'd turned to leave, but not before letting   
her know:  
  
"You're kinda pretty."  
  
Nabiki closed her eyes and she could feel the blush rising to her face.   
If you really thought about it, Kuno really wasn't that---  
  
"BOO!"  
  
Her eyes flew open in amazement as she felt herself falling backwards on   
her chair.  
  
"Aaah!"  
  
The last thing she saw before she hit the floor was a smiling Akane.   
  
"Really oneechan, you've been acting pretty weird today. This is the   
SECOND time I see you with that silly look on your face AND the second time I've   
been able to surprise you."   
  
The middle Tendo girl glared at her younger sister, trying hard to keep   
her temper in check.  
  
"Keep it up, little sis and you might end up doing a photo spread along   
with your transgender boyfriend."  
  
Akane raised her eyebrows in surprise.  
  
"Touche, big sis. Anyway, didn't you say that you were going to tell me   
what's had you so spaced out?"  
  
"Yeah, but I also said to ditch the stupid piggie jimmies didn't I?"  
  
Nabiki laughed as her sister looked down at her pajamas and blushed in   
embarrassment. Akane had christened them her "P-jamas" and had worn them ever   
since she had found the stupid black pig. She made a mental note to get her   
some new ones for Christmas.   
  
"Oh, get over it Nabs and tell me what's going on!"  
  
There was an awkward silence as Nabiki tried to figure out how to tell her   
sister about Kuno's unexpected attitude towards her.   
  
"Well, you see...it's sort of complicated and I really don't know how to-  
-"  
  
"Oneechan, my fiance's sex-changing, I've been abducted by princes and   
ghosts, possessed by a demon, been trapped in the body of a doll, and even had   
my mirror reflection come to life...can you honestly tell me that whatever you   
have to say will even come CLOSE to being as complicated as anything that I've   
listed?"   
  
Her sister had a point. But it was still difficult to tell her sister   
that, for the first time in her life, she thought she might like a guy. And   
KUNO of all people!  
  
"You're right, of course."   
  
Akane smiled triumphantly.  
  
"Of course I am, Nabs. Now, let me help you out. As I said earlier,   
those flowers," she pointed to the violets in the crystal vase, "were given to   
you by someone. The question is, WHO is that someone?"   
  
Nabiki's nervous laughter filled the room, and she tossed her pocketbook   
from hand to hand, something she did only when she was at al loss for words.  
  
"IS it a secret admirer?"   
  
"No."  
  
"Is it someone I know?"  
  
"Maybe."  
  
"Is it Hiroshi?"  
  
"Ew!"  
  
"Dear kami, it's not Daisuke, is it?"  
  
"Akane!"  
  
"Tomahome!"  
  
"There's a thought!"  
  
"Is it a girl? Because if it is, you know that I'll still love you Nabs.   
Lesbian or not--"   
  
"IT'S KUNO! OKAY?! Happy now?!!! Sheesh!"  
  
Akane sat in stunned silence, her eyes and jaw wide open in disbelief.  
  
"Kuno?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Are you SURE it's not a girl..."  
  
"Akane!"  
  
"Just kidding oneechan. Sheesh, you don't have to be so sore about it."   
  
Nabiki turned away, hating that she felt so embarrassed and so damn   
vulnerable. Who would've ever thought that KUNO would have HER of all people   
acting like a silly schoolgirl?   
  
Who would've thought ANYONE would have had her acting that way?  
  
Nabiki laughed bitterly. Was she really so desperate that she had   
actually come to like the village fool? She was smart, intelligent, not bad-  
looking and anyone would have thought that she could get someone besides Kuno.  
  
ANYONE besides Kuno.  
  
"You can laugh, you know. I mean, you're probably thinking I've gone   
crazy or that it's not a big deal that he likes me seeing how he chases after   
half of the Furinkan High female population?"   
  
She was surprised to feel a warm hand being placed over her own. Nabiki   
turned in surprise, expecting to see her sister smiling mischievously, a gleam   
in her eye.  
  
Akane had neither.   
  
"To tell you the truth...I'm not that surprised. I mean, first of all, he   
doesn't look half-bad."  
  
Nabiki laughed at that.   
  
"All right, I'll admit, he's HOT. And he's got the height going for him   
and he is the only guy I know that talks poetically to a girl---just wish he'd   
do it without sounding like a maniac---and..."  
  
"He's rich."  
  
Akane bopped Nabiki over the head with the nearest pillow she could find.  
  
"OF course, oneechan! I would be worried about you if you didn't take   
financial status into consideration when choosing a guy."   
  
"What I'm trying to say is that I think it's great that Kuno likes you and   
that maybe, you haven't really said anything about it, you like him too."  
  
Nabiki gave a snort in amusement.   
  
"Whatever, little sis. You're just happy that there's a chance that I'll   
be getting him off your back."  
  
"Of course, THAT'S a plus. Besides, want me to tell you why I think he   
likes you more than me or even the ludicrously voluptuous Ranko?"  
  
"Oh please do, little sister."  
  
Before Nabiki could protest, Akane grabbed the vase that held the violets   
given to her by Kuno.   
  
"Because, oneechan, out of all the things Kuno's ever thrown our way---  
money, fancy jewelry, red roses that seem like something out of a Monet   
painting---he has NEVER given us something so simple or personal."  
  
"Yeah, sure. You get jewelry and money and I get a bunch of purple   
flowers."  
  
Akane grabbed the violets out of the vase, tossed them to the floor and   
placed her foot so it hovered above them.  
  
"Hey! What are you doing?! Akane, if you so much as harm a damn petal on   
those violets I'm gonna..."  
  
Nabiki paused at the sound of her sister's giggling.  
  
"See Nabiki? You care more about the 'bunch of purple flowers' than the '  
fact that I just grabbed a hundred yen from your wallet."  
  
"WHAT?!!"  
  
Akane ran to the door as Nabiki rushed to save her violets from dying of   
dehydration.   
  
"Oh and, Nabiki?"  
  
Nabiki threw a murderous glance Akane's way.  
  
"I bet Kuno's a good kisser too, isn't he?"  
  
"A-KA-NE!"  
---------  
  
Sasuke jumped from rooftop to rooftop, energized by what he'd heard in the   
Tendo dojo.   
  
His master would be pleased to hear what he'd just witnessed. ]  
  
Yes, he'd be pleased, indeed.   
  
As much loyalty as he felt for Master Kuno, he couldn't help being   
surprised that someone had actually fallen for the idi---  
  
Ahem, that was to say, he was surprised that someone had actually looked   
beyond Master Kuno's odd actions and discovered something worth liking.   
  
Kami knew HE hadn't.   
  
He was being unjust. If it ever came down to choosing between the Black   
Rose and Master Kuno, he'd take his Master ANY day.  
  
After all, he _was_ the saner of the two.  
  
Then again, if he had ANY choice, he'd be out of that loony bin faster   
than...  
  
"Ow!"  
  
Sasuke gave a surprised yelp as he found that everything had suddenly been   
turned upside down.   
  
Oh no! He'd forgotten all about the spirits that guarded the Kuno honor   
(what little was left of it) and punished anyone who did not maintain loyalto to   
the Kuno household.   
  
"Forgive me spirits, for I have---"  
  
He stopped upon realizing that someone was holding HIM upside down and   
that the someone was familiar to him.   
  
"Care to tell me what you were doing spying on the Tendos."  
  
Sasuke sighed and wondered how Ranma Saotome had been able to sneak up on   
him, the stealthiest of ninjas, so easily.   
  
"I must get back to my Master."   
  
He attempted to do wriggle his way out of Ranma's grasp but found himself   
being hoisted into a knapsack instead.   
  
"You're not goin' anywhere, little man...at least not until you answer my   
question."   
  
This, Sasuke decided, was going to be a LOOONG evening.   
---------------------------  
  
Author's notes:   
All right, so it took a little longer than expected to write up the second   
chapter. Okay, so it took me WAY longer than _I_ expected to write up the second   
chapter. But it's done, I'm back on track, and please (if anybody out there   
hasn't, disgusted by the delay, stopped reading this fanfic) give me feedback.   
Like it? Don't like it? What do you WANT from me?! LOL. Make sure to check out   
my new Sailor Moon fic.   
  
Latin Usako 


	5. Meddlesome Fools

Disclaimer: All the characters belong to Rumiko  
Takahashi and other respective companies and I am  
in no way making any profit from this story. This  
is just for my personal enjoyment and for the  
enjoyment of those who may read this....aw crap,   
it doesn't matter, does it? ALL fanfic authors   
are being bad---very, very, bad! Thank   
goodness Rumiko Takahashi has a kind soul...  
either that or she's too busy swimming in all   
that money to really pay attention ^_~.   
  
Rated: PG-13   
  
Email me with C&C: simplyshy@hotmail.com  
  
**************************************************   
For the Love of Money and A Kiss To Boot:   
Meddlesome Fools  
SM  
**************************************************  
"Ready to talk yet, little man?"  
  
Sasuke, unable to kick the arrogant martial artist before him as he so   
desperately wanted to, simply shot daggers at him with his eyes and said nothing.  
  
"Well, the way I see it, you have two options. One, you tell me exactly   
what you were doing outside Nabiki's window when you have no business being there   
OR..."  
  
Ranma grabbed the small ninja by the legs and lowered him so that he was   
hanging just above Nabiki's window.   
  
"I can just toss you inside Nabiki's room and let her and Akane handle   
you."  
  
Everyone knew that even Happosai, Master of the School of Perverts and   
Peeping Toms would have trembled at the thought of being left at the mercy of   
Akane's wrath. Nothing was worse than the pain that Akane could inflict on her   
victims...nothing, that is, unless you counted the psychological and emotional  
pain that Nabiki Tendo was good at dishing out.   
  
"No! I will NOT betray Master Kuno's trust! As his servant, I have been   
trained to withstand the worst kinds of pain. Why, I remember the time that  
Mistress Kodachi's pet alligator almost tore me to...."  
  
Before Sasuke could finish recounting why it wasn't a good idea to   
have strips of meat tied to oneself, ESPECIALLY around pet alligators, he found   
himself facing an annoyed martial artist.   
  
"See _this_?"  
  
Ranma pointed to a long scar on his arm with his index finger.  
  
"And _these_?"  
  
Sasuke's eyes followed the index finger and came to rest on a series  
of thin scars on Ranma's neck and temple.   
  
"I got these by just LOOKIN' at her funny..."  
  
The grim expression on Ranma's face changed to one of amusement.   
  
"Imagine what she'll do, no, what BOTH of 'em will do to you..."  
  
The ninja began to tremble with terror. He wanted to believe that Ranma   
Saotome was jesting and yet, he himself had often tended to the injuries that   
his master had suffered because of the youngest Tendo's short temper.   
  
So, he did what any loyal, honorable servant would do when put in such   
dire straits...he squealed like a pig.   
  
"It's not MY fault that Master Kuno fails to use the common sense he was   
born with! _I_ am not the one who cares to know of Nabiki Tendo's affections!"  
  
Ranma motioned for Sasuke to stop with a wave of his hand.  
  
"What do you mean, her affections? Ya mean to tell me you were out here   
listenin' to girl talk because," Ranma paused long enough to scratch his head,   
"_why_ were you listening?"  
  
Sasuke sighed and rolled his tearful eyes in exasperation. He had to   
remember that, while the kami had blessed the young man before him with great brute   
strength they had failed to fill his head with brains.   
  
"Master Kuno wants to know if Nabiki Tendo has any feelings for him."  
  
The confusion was still evident on the martial artist's face.   
  
"But _why_ would he wanna know a thing like that? Unless...."   
  
It was entertaining, really, to be witness to Ranma Saotome's thought   
process. Sasuke found it highly amusing to see the martial artist's   
expression change from one of confusion to frustration and, finally, to one of   
disbelief. He could only imagine the way that the scarcely used dim lightbulb in   
Saotome's head suddenly brightened as he caught on.   
  
"You mean...Kuno has the hots for Nabiki!"  
  
Sasuke sighed at Saotome's rather uncouth way of expressing himself but,   
then again, he _was_ a commoner.   
  
"Well, yes, it seems that lately Miss Tendo and Master Kuno have been on  
friendlier terms. You, see, he thinks that....what, exactly, do you find so amusing?"   
  
The question only seemed to fuel Ranma's current state of hysterics and   
Sasuke suddenly wondered if maybe the martial artist hadn't been hit on the head with   
the youngest Tendo's hyperspacial hammer one too many times.  
  
Sasuke shuddered to think what punishment he himself might have suffered   
if the temperamental Tendo had caught him eavesdropping outside her sister's window.  
  
It suddenly dawned on Sasuke that Ranma was dangerously close to the roof's   
edge and had Ranma not found the idea of the Ice Queen having a heart of any kind quite  
hilarious he may have noticed the evil smile plastered on the small ninja's face.   
  
As it was, Ranma's defenses were down and, besides, he was having a grand time   
guffawing at the thought that the Ice Queen and the Idiot Extraordinaire were   
attracted to each other.   
  
One, then, can hardly blame Sasuke for taking advantage of a perfectly good   
opportunity when it presented itself. After all, he figured that since he was going to   
suffer some utterly humiliating punishment once Master Kuno found out that he'd divulged   
confidential information so easily he might as well make the crime worth the punishment.   
  
Thus, he happily bounced onto Ranma Saotome's head with enough force   
to knock him off the rooftop and somersaulted his way down to the grass below.   
  
He bowed to his captor and raised his fist in triumph.   
  
"Give the my regards to the Tendos, Saotome!"   
  
And with that, the stealthy ninja was gone.  
  
Ranma could only mutter obscenities at the retreating ninja and vowed   
to pound him to a pulp the next time he saw him. He gripped the edge of the ledge   
and was about to propel himself back onto the rooftop but his arms suddenly lost   
all feeling.   
  
He felt a sense of dread pass through him as he suddenly felt someone's eyes boring   
holes in his back. Ranma would later swear that he saw his life flash right before his eyes.   
  
There was no doubt in his mind that some cruel kami, no doubt the same kami that   
made sure that the same old lady with an annoyingly precise aim splashed him with cold   
water each and every morning on his way to school, was laughing his ass off somewhere on   
some kami plane.   
  
He _knew_ that there was someone glaring at him from below and he also   
knew that that someone was undoubtedly female. A very pissed off female to be exact.   
  
Ranma felt like running for the hills when said female spoke, her voice   
dangerously sweet.   
  
"Why are you hanging outside my sister's window, Ranma?"   
  
One day, Ranma promised himself, he would find a way to obliterate that stupid kami.  
  
"N-n-nothing..." He winced after hearing his voice rise an octave.   
  
"I'm sure there's a reason. I'll meet you up on the roof in a   
little bit, Ranma so you can tell me all about it."  
  
She hadn't sent him into lower earth orbit. Ranma wondered if maybe the   
mysterious kami wasn't as cruel as he'd thought.  
  
"Oh, and Ranma? It'd better be a _damn good_ reason."  
  
Scratch that. He would find a way to make that kami meet Akane's   
hyperspacial hammer and _then_ he'd obliterate it.  
  
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@  
  
"I take it that your mission went well, Sasuke?"  
  
Sasuke, a bit unnerved that his Master always insisted on turning his   
leather chair so that his back was turned like some evil fiend from an action   
movie, gathered his wits before answering.   
  
"The mission was aborted, Master, due to the interference of one meddling  
Ranma Saotome."  
  
That was, Sasuke reasoned, not exactly a lie per se. He _had_ been forced   
to abort his mission after Saotome had caught him eavesdropping outside Nabiki   
Tendo's window. He was just ommitting a couple of facts and there was absolutely   
no harm in that. After all, what Master Kuno didn't know would keep Sasuke away   
from strips of meat and pet alligators.  
  
Truth be told, and thank goodness this truth was known only to himself,   
Sasuke had done a lot of thinking as he made his way back to the Kuno mansion   
and had come to a decision of sorts. He did not exactly like being placed   
in the middle of whatever might be brewing between Master Kuno and Nabiki Tendo.   
  
He had pondered all the possible outcomes of Nabiki Tendo discovering that   
he, an innocent servant of a noodles-for-brains master, had been meddling in her   
affairs and, quite frankly, each and every one had involved neverending misery   
and torture.   
  
Pet alligators were plush toy bunnies compared to the wrath that Nabiki  
Tendo would undoubtedly inflict on Sasuke.   
  
Thus,he had decided that the safest recourse would be to take everything   
he had heard at the Tendo dojo to his grave and avoid going to an early grave by   
avoiding Nabiki Tendo. Avoidance was not necessarily a bad thing.  
  
"If I may be so bold, Master, why don't you just confront Miss Tendo   
with your queries?"   
  
His master swiveled his chair abruptly so that he was facing the small   
ninja. That, however, was not as disconcerting to Sasuke as the blank expression  
on his master's face.   
  
"That is out of the question, Sasuke. I did not ask for your advice nor   
do I desire it. You have proven yourself to be of no use to me in this matter   
so you may take your leave."  
  
Sasuke nodded. That was perfectly fine with him, although he hoped that   
his relief was not too evident.  
  
He gave the obligatory respectful bow, although he felt anything but at   
the moment, and made a hasty retreat from the young master's office. He had no   
idea why or how Master Kuno had gotten romantically involved with Miss Nabiki   
but he was more than sure that it would be a match made in hell.   
  
Thankfully, he had actually managed to avoid hell's furies...at least for   
the moment.  
  
As he passed through the dark hallway filled with paintings of the   
deceased members of the Kuno lineage, he couldn't help but feel a bit sorry   
for his Master.   
  
Sure, he lacked the common sense given to every other human being in the   
world and he was eccentric, bossy, and demanding but he was not all bad.   
  
He was kind at heart and Sasuke was positive that, beneath that   
clueless front that his Master put on, there was a decent, intelligent individual.  
Well, maybe way,way,way, _way_ beneath the surface.   
  
Besides, although Sasuke was loathe to admit it, he owed his loyalty   
to the Kuno clan where serious matters were concerned for the tolerance they   
had shown him through his years of service.   
  
His thoughts were interrupted as he was yanked into the extravagant  
room that housed Mistress Kodachi's various exotic pets.   
  
A young woman dressed in a black leotard, a rose in one hand and   
spiraling ribbons in the other beckoned the servant, her ruby red lips   
turned up in a mocking smile.  
  
"Oh ho ho ho! Sasuke, would you be a dear and feed my pet alligators   
for me?"  
  
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@  
  
True to her word, Akane was waiting for Ranma on the rooftop a few minutes   
later, her expression neutral. She was wearing the same pig pajamas he'd   
always hated [he'd tried to burn them once but had been caught in the act  
by Akane herself and he'd gotten a good lashing for it too---he still had the   
scars to prove it] if only because the stupid pigs looked suspiciously like  
P-chan.  
  
Ranma took a seat beside her, making sure not to let his eyes wander below  
her face. Although he and Akane were in a relationship of sorts, he still was  
not exactly sure of what liberties said relationship granted him, so   
he always avoided getting too personal. He'd long decided that it was safer to let   
Akane initiate things and had found the results to be quite pleasant.   
  
Unfortunately, and much to Ranma's dismay, it was difficult at the moment  
to keep his eyes focused on her face not only because she had long outgrown   
the pajama top she was currently wearing but also because it had risen so that  
her stomach, a firm and thus very attractive stomach, was exposed.  
  
There was no way that the girl sitting beside him was uncute, unsexy  
and she sure as hell wasn't a tomboy. He had no idea why he'd even suggested   
such things in the first place. It was a good thing that they'd straightened   
everything out recently because he was more than certain that any other guy   
would have given his right arm to have her by his side.   
  
He took a deep breath, reminding himself that she was probably in no   
mood to do anything but pound him to the ground and that one false move would  
have him knocked off of the rooftop and onto the koi pond.   
  
"Well...," she asked, her eyes narrowed and eyebrows furrowed.  
  
"Umm...well, you see, it's really funny actually." Ranma placed his  
hands behind his head and laughed nervously.   
  
"I'm sure it is, and I'm _sure_ that I'll be laughing right along with  
you as soon as you tell me what the HELL you were doing hanging outside my   
sister's window."  
  
At that moment, Akane felt quite proud of herself having kept her anger   
in check for so long. Kami knew that she'd had to fight that familiar urge to   
whip out her hyperspacial hammer and blast him to the heavens but because things   
had changed between them, and because she liked seeing him squirm, she had   
decided to merely threaten him with the tone of her voice.   
  
He should be glad that she hadn't grabbed the nearest rock and lunged  
it at his head the way she'd wanted to.  
  
Then again, Akane admitted to herself, he had made quite a picture hanging  
outside that window. She'd seen the way he'd been ready to make his way onto the  
rooftop and had to suppress a giggle as she remembered how he'd gone still the   
moment he'd realized that she was watching him.   
  
Poor Ranma.  
  
Of course, she'd never _tell_ him that. It was too much fun making him   
think that, under certain circumstances, she could still be the violent tomboy  
she'd always been.  
  
So she made her voice as icy and no-nonsense as she could, tapped her  
fingers impatiently and spoke:  
  
"I'm waiting, Ranma."  
  
Ranma took a moment to look, really _look_ at the situation and the more   
he thought about it, the more ridiculous everything seemed. He'd faced  
demons, mystical creatures, and had gone through all sorts of hell to get this  
petite, dark haired woman back to him all those times she'd been in trouble  
and here he was shaking like a leaf.   
  
Once he let the first waves of laughter through, there was no stopping  
him.   
  
"What's so funny?"  
  
With one fluid motion, Ranma grabbed Akane and gently deposited her on   
his lap. He grasped her hands from behind so that they lay crossed on her lap.  
  
"You, me---us. Boy, you scare the hell outta me sometimes, you know."  
  
Akane blushed. As much headway as they'd made the past few weeks, she   
still found their newfound closeness a bit disconcerting at times. Not that she   
didn't like it, of course. It was just that this would definitely take some   
getting used to.  
  
"I find it a bit hard to believe that the 'great' Ranma Saotome is scared  
of a harmless tomboy like moi."_  
  
"First of all, I _am_ most definitely great and second of all you are  
definitely _not_ a tomboy."  
  
Akane never thought she'd see the day when Ranma would have her purring   
with pleasure but that was exactly what he seemed to be doing at the moment.   
Ranma had let his lips brush against the sensitive spot below her earlobe and '  
she could feel his soft, rhythmic breathing on her neck.   
  
She lay her head on his shoulder and turned it at an angle so that she  
was practically offering her neck to him on a silver platter. He began to place  
soft, languid kisses along the offered neck.  
  
"Don't, ah, think that, um..." All semblance of anger had left her and  
Akane couldn't, for the life of her, remember what the hell she wanted to ask  
him.  
  
Ranma's lips curved into a smile at the nape of her neck. To think,   
all those times he'd wished he had a way to subdue Akane when she was going   
through her fits of anger and here she was practically melting with just a few  
strategically placed kisses!  
  
"Ranma, oh, um...that tickles!"  
  
The kisses stopped for a second but that was enough time for Akane to   
push Ranma onto his back and position herself so that she was straddling his   
waist.   
  
"Seriously, Ranma. What were you doing outside my sister's window?"  
  
How the hell, Ranma wondered, did she expect him to answer that question   
when the only thing he could think about was the way her toned thighs were   
pressed against him? Besides, his brain was a bit preoccupied with various   
images that had nothing to do with windows...or clothing, for that matter.  
  
He gave a sigh of frustration before answering.  
  
"I found Kunou's stupid ninja Sasuke listening in on your talk with   
Nabiki and had a little chat with him."  
  
Akane chewed on her lip, confusion evident on her face.  
  
"But then how'd you---"  
  
"I'm getting to that. He told me that Kunou'd sent him to see if he   
could find out whether or not your sister had the hots for him. I started   
laughing my ass off, because really who woulda thought the Ice Queen would   
ever---"  
  
Ranma felt Akane stiffen and thought better about telling her how he  
found the idea of Nabiki loving anything besides money ridiculous.  
  
"Ha ha, um, anyway, he caught me off guard and pushed me off the freakin'   
rooftop."   
  
He was hesitant about looking up at Akane's face for fear that he'd   
upset her with the whole Ice Queen comment. After all, Nabiki may have been  
a cold, calculating, and ruthless business woman but she was _still_ her sister.  
  
Much to his surprise, Akane had a faraway look on her face and her eyes   
had an odd spark he'd never seen in them. The gentle smile on her face only  
made her that much more breathtaking in his eyes.   
  
No, she was anything _but_ a tomboy.  
  
"This is great! So Kunou likes Nabiki and she, of course, likes him.  
Well, she didn't really admit it, but I KNOW she does because I can _see_ it  
and Nabiki's gonna have a boyfriend, Kunou of all people, and here I was   
thinking she might be a lesbian!"  
  
Ranma wondered how one person could say so much without taking one so   
much as a breath of air.   
  
"Oh I feel so happy for my nee-chan! She finally has someone she   
likes and he likes her and.."  
  
Ranma cleared his throat.  
  
"Before you go off and get 'em married, I think there's something,   
actually _two_ somethings you're forgetting about Akane."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Well, have you forgotten about that idiot's 'pig-tailed girl' and  
his 'beauteous Akane'? You think he's gonna stop chasing after them just   
like that?"  
  
The wedding bells stopped ringing.  
  
"Well...no. Unless..."  
  
Akane lowered herself so that she and Ranma were eye to eye. She placed  
her hands on either side of his head and began to run her fingers so that   
she was massaging his scalp.  
  
"We help them out a little."  
  
There were few things that Ranma feared more than the "meet-my-   
trusty-hammer Akane" unless it was the "I've-got-an-idea-and-you're-going-  
to-help-me-out Akane."   
  
When a woman had a plan it was time to run for the hills.  
  
He would have too, if he hadn't been so distracted by those fingers  
running through his hair and those expressive eyes that were focused on him   
and him alone and, kami, she was soft and smelled nice!  
  
"A-ak-ane...um, he's seen my, um, ch-ch-ange and, ah, that didn't   
stop him from, ah....ah, chasing after me, remember?"  
  
Akane merely placed a soft kiss on his lips before moving to his   
jawline and, finally, his ear. She gave his earlobe a gentle tug before replying.  
  
"Don't worry, Ranma. I'll think of something."  
  
The last coherent thought Ranma had before his surging hormones   
took control of his almost defunct brain cells was that soon all hell   
would break loose.   
  
  
Next Chapter: "When Hell Breaks Loose"  
  
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@  
  
Author: Hello, everyone! My Muse is back! Say hello to everyone, Muse!  
  
Muse: *waves*  
  
Author: Where the HELL have you been?!  
  
Muse: Well, exCUse me for not wanting to stay around while you suffered   
a nervous breakdown due to stress, university food poisoning, and final exams.   
Oh, and did I mention that you were so drugged up on caffeine that you were   
starting to talk to imaginary, furry, pink bunnies?   
  
Author: ;- _ -  
  
Muse: Thought so. In any case, I'm back and there's no stopping me.   
  
Author: Oh, by the way, I'm going to graduate school next year.  
  
Muse: See ya!  
@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@  
Author's Note: No, I didn't disappear, nor did I give up on finishing this fanfic.   
With NabikiXKuno fanfiction being so sparse did you honestly think that I would   
leave this unfinished? Oh, ye of little faith. No worries, though.   
  
Sorry if this chapter was too Ranma/Akane WAFFish but I promise that the next   
chapter will be chalk full of Nabiki/Kunou goodness.  
  
In any case, I'm back, my Muse has returned and I think I have two more   
chapters to go before this is finished. I'm into Inuyasha now (another creation   
from the greatness that is Rumiko Takahashi) so expect some fanfiction about   
everyone's favorite hanyou and his friends as soon as I'm finished with   
my current fanfics.  
I sincerely thank everyone who's left C&C and encourage you to let me know what   
you think of this new chapter.   
  
Until next time,   
  
Latin Usako  
latin_usako@tokyo.com 


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